Spied: 2012 Buick Regal Wagon

According to Bob Lutz, GM planned all along to offer a Buick Regal wagon alongside the sedan in the United States. But GM’s bankruptcy saw funds for the program diverted to more pressing priorities, and such a hauler was put on the back burner. It appears plans may be back on track, judging by these spy shots.

The photos show an Opel Insignia Sports Tourer—the Regal sedan is a rebadged Insignia four-door—that’s undergone extensive Buick-fication, including the installation of a chrome multi-slat grille and Buick emblems and wheels. Not all things Opel are gone, however, as the rear hatch still wears an “Insignia” badge. More interesting, however, is the “Turbo X” stuck to its rump; it’s a piece of jewelry we last saw—in a different font—on a limited run of 2008 Saab 9-3s, and its presence likely indicates that this particular example sports all-wheel drive (perhaps of the torque-vectoring variety, as on the Saabs) and a 2.0-liter turbo four. The 220-hp 2.0-liter is the only turbocharged engine offered in the U.S. Regal sedan, and testing any of the Europe-only engines over here wouldn’t make much sense. The Regal’s other engine is a 182-hp, naturally aspirated 2.4-liter four.

The Regal wagon would compete with the Acura TSX Sport Wagon and Audi A4 Avant. Like those cars—as well as GM’s own Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon—expect an Americanized Regal wagon to get a consumer-friendly name in an attempt to coddle U.S. consumers, most of whom are ninnies and won’t buy anything labeled solely as a wagon. Regal Sport Wagon is a possibility, as is carrying over the Sports Tourer designation.

Of course, what we really want is a high-performance variant. It could use the 255-hp, 2.0-liter turbo four found in the Regal GS sedan concept or the 325-hp V-6 from the Opel Insignia OPC Sports Tourer, possibly paired with all-wheel drive. It seems unlikely, but the existence of the Cadillac CTS-V wagon shows that somebody somewhere in GM appreciates go-fast wagons. Make it so, General.